By: Jon Behm
I am no beer connoisseur. I was, however, disappointed to find that just when I had developed a fondness for Old Style, the 400 Bar stopped serving it. I was there Thursday to see The Clientele, one of my favorite bands of late, and the only thing that tempered my mood was the three-dollar Old Style can being replaced by the four-dollar Budweiser can as the “bargain beer.” Not wanting to pay over five bucks for a plastic cup of Summit, I grudgingly sipped a Bud as I sidled up to the stage in time to see opener, Planes for Spaces’ set.
The Clientele by Jon Behm
Planes for Spaces is a two-piece alternative rock set out of St. Paul. Lead singer Joe January is fairly skilled with the guitar and lays down a lot of filthy licks over the somewhat simplistic beats of drummer Mark Rode. They play a mix of straightforward alt-rock with some shoe gazer and noise rock elements thrown in, bringing to mind bands like My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth. PFS’s sound is more pared down though, due to the nature of their simple drum and guitar setup. Though small, the band does manage a pretty complex range of sound, drawing mainly from January’s skills as a guitarist.
The following band was Beach House, another two-piece. Members Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally play soft lush dream pop, which is obviously influenced by the peaceful and serene streets of their hometown Baltimore. Much like the Great Baltimore Fire of 1904, Beach House brought the house down with a killer show.
They started the set with “Apple Orchard,” a beautiful, dreamy tune, which was actually my introduction to the band when I first listened to them on Pitchfork. Legrand has a deep throaty voice that has drawn comparison with the likes of Hope Sandoval. Legrand is more Warm Inventions than Mazzy Star though—her voice is really the only distinct similarity. Beach House plays their own unique brand of quiet organ and guitar melodies that, for me anyway, sets them apart from other bands of the same genre. Theirs is an eerie almost mournful pop. Heavy drones on the organ produce a dark somber tone, while Scally’s guitar playing, often times employing a bottleneck, adds a hint of tropicalia, at times sounding a bit like slack-key. The recorded drum beats are added minimally, almost as an afterthought.
While pretty serious, Beach House was far from a downer. After treating us to some new songs that have yet to be recorded, Legrand and Scally bid us good night and left the audience in an atmospheric euphoria that they had created.
The Clientele by Jon Behm
Originally from England, The Clientele are a group of three blokes and a bird. They play a very reverb flush blend of soft surreal pop. Leading off with the stupendous “Since K Got Over Me,” they played somewhat stoically and with great concentration. MacLean handled most of the vocals, lulling the audience into respectful silence with his soft breathy voice. Mel Draisey’s violin added a touch of sweetness to the mix, giving some levity to the otherwise cloudy pop music. The ‘60s Britpop influence was pretty obvious, but The Clientele are more melancholy and poetic than swingin’. They would have sounded natural covering The Kinks’ “Waterloo Sunset” for instance, though “Victoria” would probably have been a strain.
While the music was somewhat dark, the band was not without a sense of humor. MacLean joked around and bantered a bit with the audience. He seemed very comfortable on stage. I think he was a bit startled though when one of the audience members said to him quietly, “that was great, Alasdair.” He quipped slyly about how the audience was close enough to trade whispers with him.
Overall the set was very smooth and very enjoyable. Standout tracks included “My Own Face Inside the Trees” and “Bookshop Cassanova” along with the aforementioned “Since K Got over Me.” Some of the songs I did not recognize and I can only assume that they were from the very recent album, God Save the Clientele, which has only been out a few weeks.
I left the club a satisfied customer.
Location Info:
400 Bar
Artist Info: Beach House, Planes for Spaces, The Clientele
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